Hooker-Landsborough and Adams winter Tahr Ballot

Updated: May 18




On this page:

  • 2022 winter ballot updates

  • Aerial access

  • Applications

  • Ballot process

  • Dates

  • Hunting areas

  • Permit conditions

  • Aerial operators

  • Safety

2022 winter ballot updates

Applications were open 9 am Tuesday 5 October 2021.

Applications closed 4 pm Friday 29 October 2021.

(external site)Applications were only be accepted through the online application form found via the link on this page.

Hunting periods were increased from 11 to 12 weeks.

Application restrictions

  • Only one application per party leader, multiple applications will be voided with no refund. Party Leader must be hunting, no transfers of permit

  • Open stage for the uptake of any canceled sites will now be only available to parties that do not already hold a successful ballot, giving more hunters the opportunity to participate.

  • Hunters using a firearm must abide by the New Zealand Police Arms Code and the Arms Act 1983 and have a valid firearms licence.

  • Party leaders need to supply a photo of their valid New Zealand firearms licence with their confirmation.

There are party-size limits for safety and to minimise impacts on campsites:

  • minimum size 2

  • maximum size 6.

Fee

A non-refundable fee of $60 will be charged for each application regardless of whether the applicant is successful or not.

Contact

All correspondence for the 2021/2022 Tahr Ballot must be sent to haasthuntingballot@doc.govt.nz.

Tahr hunting ballot results 2021

  • Adams tahr ballot hunting results 2020/21 (PDF, 136K) (opens in new window)

  • Hooker/Landsborough tahr ballot hunting results 2020/21 (PDF, 107K) (opens in new window)

  • Adams and Hooker/Landsborough tahr hunting results 2020/21 (XLSX, 17K) (opens in new window)

Results from 2020:

  • Adams tahr ballot hunting results 2019/20 (PDF, 122K)

  • Hooker/Landsborough tahr ballot hunting results 2019/20 (PDF, 116K)

Aerial access

In the 2022 ballot, recreational hunters will have some managed aerial access into the Hooker / Landsborough and Adams Wilderness Areas. This was made available under the terms of the ‘Himalayan Tahr Control Plan’, approved by the Minister of Conservation in 1993.

This reflects the identification in the plan of recreational tahr hunting as one of the primary controls for tahr in particular areas.

List of DOC approved aircraft concessionaires for tahr services.

Help control tahr

Managed aerial access is being provided to position recreational hunters, and will be for a limited period of May to July. This period was selected to limit effects on other wilderness users and to coincide with the tahr rut and the period when skins are at their best.

Recreational hunters are being given this access to help reduce tahr densities to the target levels set in the tahr control plan. While a hunter’s chief objective may be trophy bulls, the Department encourages all hunters to remove nannies and juveniles in the process and to reduce group sizes to less than five animals.

Future access is reviewed annually

Aerial access to these areas is a privilege – look after the opportunity.

Future access is reviewed annually and will depend on the way all parties involved co-operate to achieve the tahr density objectives set out in The Himalayan Tahr Control Plan. Access must be managed to minimise effects on the wilderness values that these areas have been set aside to protect. Effects on these values will take longer to determine.

Post-season inspections locate hidden rubbish such as burnt tins, plastic, string, bags of coal, unburied toilet waste, offal and just poorly rehabilitated campsites. Remember these sites are inhabited for 12 straight weeks and it can be very unpleasant for the Parties towards the end of the season.

It is imperative to see an increasing number of sites being left clean and tidy with minimum impact, as this is the key to continued hunting access.

Applications

Applications:

  • opened 9 am Tuesday 5 October 2021

  • closed 4 pm Friday 29 October 2021.


Applications were only be accepted on the online application form.

Applications for the ballot draw had to include:

  • party leader contact details – name, address, date of birth, phone number and email

  • party members names, addresses and date of birth.

Submit only one application per party for the area and period you're interested in. Use all your five choices and put your preferred site first.

Party’s found to have entered more than once will have all applications voided and no refund given.

Historically, applications have concentrated on the first two weeks of the programme, which leaving free many weeks later on.

Fees

A $60 (incl GST) non-refundable fee will be charged per application.

Where the fee money goes

These charges are solely to recover the costs of managing and administrating aerial access systems in a way that ensures the wilderness values of these areas